Are you confused about taking birth control pills (BCP’s)? Well … you’re not alone. Many women have been receiving conflicting advice about them. Perhaps you’ve taken them some time ago and noticed the negative effects they had on your body – or you’re taking them now and wondering if they’re doing any damage.

Many of you have long suspected certain health problems like migraine headaches or PMS developed after you had taken the Pill. You played the detective and determined that BCP’s were indeed the culprit.

But when you talked to your doctor about it, you were probably told BCP’s are good for you - and to continue taking them. But deep down inside, you felt this was not the best advice to take.

You Were Right All Along

Many of you figured out a long time ago there was something wrong with birth control pills. Noticing changes in your body that were simply detrimental, a good number of you became aware your migraines and several other female problems began soon after you started taking these oral contraceptives.

Of course, once you figured out birth control pills were harming your body, you stopped taking them. Too bad your doctors didn’t pay attention, even when you told them what you noticed. Often times, you were dismissed, patronized or even given a prescription for anti-depressants!

However, you were right all along. Birth control pills are indeed a huge problem. And a big pat in the back for those of you that figured it out all by yourself.

So What Do You Do?

Since the 1960’s, when birth control pills were first introduced, millions of women worldwide have taken them, believing they were safe and effective for contraception.

Unfortunately, that’s only a half-truth. Birth control pills are indeed very effective at contraception. But the downside is they’re extremely hazardous. Since the introduction of the Pill, there’s been an explosion of women’s diseases and maladies in a scope never experienced before in the history of medicine:

These are just the major problems known to be caused by the Pill (and standard Hormone Replacement Therapy as well). Plus, we fully expect ovarian cancer and Alzheimer’s Dementia to join this list in the next few years once more studies are completed.

But ask any doctor, and despite evidence to the contrary, they’ll describe the wonderful “benefits” of using the Pill besides contraception: Reduction in ovarian cancer, uterine cancer, endometriosis and stabilization of periods. Some brands are marketed to improve acne in younger women. How wrong they are!

“Benefits” Turned Out to Be Wrong

Before 2003, doctors used to cite protection from breast cancer, heart disease, depression and fibroids as advantages of oral contraceptive use. But all this has changed with further follow-up studies. What was once thought to be the protection is now the cause.

As with many prescription medications, it takes time to figure out the true side effects and unintended problems created by any particular pill. There’s a long list of medications introduced by drug companies, only to be taken off the market after their true effects were discovered. Many tragedies have occurred – some of the most infamous being Thalidomide and Phen/Phen – both well known and widely reported medical disasters.

Women’s Health Initiative Exploded Myths About Synthetic Hormones

PremPro® is one of the most significant embarrassments to the pharmaceutical industry ever uncovered. This was the traditional Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) drug that was exposed by the renowned Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) trial that was stopped prematurely in 2002 and reported on the front page of every newspaper throughout the world.

PremPro® was fingered for causing or increasing breast cancer, heart attacks, lung clots, Alzheimer’s Dementia and for even causing a decline in memory capacity.

Birth Control Pills are Four Times Worse Than HRT

What’s truly scary is that BCP’s are nearly chemically identical to PremPro®. What’s even worse is that the level of synthetic hormones in most BCP’s are FOUR TIMES the amount found in PremPro®. The main difference is that women taking BCP’s are considerably younger than women taking PremPro®. But how long will the protective effects of youth last?

If a drug like PremPro® is now widely acknowledged by the medical profession to be poisonous at a given dose, why should BCP’s be any less toxic when they contain four times the synthetic chemical hormone dosages? The answer is straightforward: They can’t be.

Birth control pills started out as a liberating “holy grail” for women. They’ve ended up poisoning three generations of women around the world. To find out exactly how, let’s review some basic background on these contraceptives:

How the Pill Works

The Pill contains two types of synthetic hormones: Chemically altered estrogens and progestins. They are similar – but not identical - to hormones made by a woman's ovaries.

Usually, these hormones work by preventing the ovaries from releasing its egg (ovulation). This is largely achieved by fooling the body into thinking it’s pregnant. They also work by thickening the cervical mucus, preventing sperm from implanting the egg itself. Also affected is the uterine lining, which in theory may also prevent implantation of a fertilized egg.

As you just read, oral contraceptives contain synthetic hormones which are not the same as the hormones circulating in a woman’s body. These substances are supposed to imitate the natural hormones of estrogen and progesterone, but the synthetic hormones found in the Pill are chemically altered substitutes.

The synthetic estrogen is almost always ethinyl estradiol, and is supposed to act like natural estrogen. In addition, there are numerous synthetic progestins which are supposed to act like natural progesterone.

Ethinyl Estradiol (Synthetic) Natural Estrodiol (Estrogen)

But as you can see from the diagram above, the chemically altered synthetic versions don’t look or act entirely like the natural hormones they are supposed to imitate. Even the slightest change in molecular structure makes a big difference, and this is where the problems arise.

Early Birth Control Pills Were a Problem

The earliest versions of the Pill contained very high levels of estrogens and progestins. Over the years, it was discovered (through trial and error and bad experiences) that high levels caused numerous health problems. Subsequently, later generations of BCP’s kept coming out with lower and lower synthetic hormone levels.

The latest versions of BCP’s are called “third generation” pills, featuring synthetic estrogens and synthetic progestins in the lowest doses to date. Unfortunately, even these doses are still four times higher than the equivalent natural hormones in a menstruating woman.

Many Health Conditions Never Existed Before the Pill

Most of the health problems now known to be caused by oral contraceptives were uncommon before the birth control pill appeared on the market. Troubles frequently experienced by users of BCP’s were actually (and falsely) advertised to be reduced by the birth control pill!

40 years later, so many problems in women are now so widespread and prevalent, we’ve forgotten these conditions either didn’t exist or were very rare prior to 1960 – the year the Pill was first introduced.

PMS Never Existed Before the Pill!

PMS or premenstrual syndrome is a new condition that simply did not exist 50 years ago. It’s been only recently (in the last 10 years or so) that the medical profession has even acknowledged its very existence! Yet, PMS may be the single most common affliction of women today. The main culprit? The birth control pill.

Why Do Birth Control Pills Cause These Conditions?

The key reason why birth control pills are so destructive is precisely because of the synthetic, chemically altered “hormones” used in their formulation. These “fake” hormones exert unnatural effects on a woman’s entire body.

Altered estrogen and altered progestin (the two main synthetic hormones in the Pill) act in many ways similar to their natural counterparts. But your body knows the difference! It recognizes them as chemically different and foreign elements – substances it had never seen before.

Ethinyl estradiol does have strong estrogenic properties and likewise progestin has progesterone-like qualities. But the progestin chemical in particular causes the ovaries to shut down production of natural progesterone - because it’s being flooded with a synthetic variation, commonly in the form of Norethindrone.

For unknown reasons, it’s easier for your ovaries to continue making estrogen even while on oral contraceptives as opposed to making progesterone, whose production gets shut down.

The Progestins:

Norethindrone (Synthetic)

Natural Progesterone

Notice the similarities of these two chemicals: Synthetic progestin (norethindrone) and natural progesterone. They differ by just a few electrons connected to an oxygen atom. Yet they exert powerful differences once inside your body.

The Estrogens:

Ethinyl Estradiol (Synthetic) Natural Estrodiol (Estrogen)

Again, notice how similar the synthetic estrogen (ethinyl estradiol) is to the natural hormone, estradiol. They differ by just one chemical group substitution in the right upper corner. Yet they also have tremendous differences once inside the body.

The Ovaries Shut Down Production of Natural Hormones

Once the ovaries stop production of natural progesterone, a radical shift in the estrogen-progesterone balance occurs. Estrogen becomes dominant - and natural progesterone becomes essentially non-existent.

Once the estrogen-progesterone balance makes this fundamental shift - then the adverse medical conditions we mentioned begin to form. This may take years to happen, but with the combination of the Pill and the added problem of environmental estrogens (called xeno-estrogens) these maladies are beginning to form much more quickly.

Chemically Altered Hormones Cause Irreparable Damage

Additionally, the synthetic, chemically altered hormone itself can cause irreparable damage - even in the face of normal natural progesterone production. Remember, as far as your body is concerned, these are foreign and TOXIC chemicals – not natural substances.

Tiny Alterations Result in Massive Differences

Here’s a good example showing how just a tiny alteration of a natural hormone can affect the body. Below we see two hormones: Estrogen and testosterone. These are both natural hormones found in all humans, men and women. The only differences are the relative amounts of each, with women having a lot of estrogen and a little bit of testosterone and men the exact opposite.

Testosterone Estrogen (Estradiol)

Looking at the chemical structures of estrogen and testosterone, they seem to be very similar. In fact, the only difference between these two hormones is a single double bond and one carbon atom (left hand corner – the “H” versus the HO”).

Without having to go into complex and boring details about organic chemistry, the only difference between estrogen and testosterone is a single electron. It’s that small and seemingly insignificant variation that separates whether a baby will manifest male or female characteristics. Pretty impressive, isn’t it?

If a single electron can produce such a massive difference between men and women, imagine what an entire, long chain of artificial chemical additives can do to an existing hormone! But why even make these artificial compounds in the first place, when the “real stuff” works infinitely better?

The answer lies not your health, but with the almighty dollar.

Why Drug Companies Make Synthetic, Chemically Altered Hormones

So, why do drug companies manufacture these potentially harmful drugs? The existing patent laws are to blame. In this and most other countries, natural substances or compounds already found in nature can’t be patented. In order to patent something, you HAVE to chemically change what nature created. Essentially, you must invent a non-natural substance. It’s THAT simple.

By altering the chemical structure to mimic Mother Nature, a drug company can get a patent on this new compound - protecting its costly research, development and testing investments. The reason why drug companies have to chemically alter estrogen and progesterone into an artificial drug is because of the way that the patent laws are formulated. They just don’t have any other choice.

However, the problem is once you alter a natural chemical found in the body into something else, these “foreign” substances create a whole host of ill side effects.

Natural (or Bio-Identical) Hormones Do Not Have Side Effects

On the other hand, natural hormones (also called bio-identical hormones) do not have these side effects - and never will. The only effects a natural product like progesterone can have are those that are dose-related and well known to human physiology. The reason is because, as in the case of NATURAL progesterone, nothing chemically “foreign” is being introduced into your body.

Hormone Replacement Therapy

Same Fake Hormones – Same Disastrous Results

PremPro® is the most commonly prescribed drug for HRT. It’s mainly used in near menopausal and post-menopausal women.

At least the estrogen part of HRT is closer to natural estrogen (even though it’s derived from horse urine). The progestin component is still a synthetic, chemically altered version of the natural progesterone.

The progestin ingredient of HRT - medroxyprogesterone - has been under significant investigation.

Medroxy-progesterone Natural Progesterone

Medroxyprogesterone appears to be very similar to natural progesterone, except for one double bond in the upper right portion of the molecule. Again, like the other chemically altered hormones, this tiny change results in enormous physiologic and biochemical effects.

Where BCP’s have had a number of declining dosage changes over the years, HRT has been very uniform in chemical makeup and dosages over time. Also, HRT more closely resembles natural levels of hormones in terms of blood level dosages.

Based on the chemical makeup and dosage levels of HRT, one would think it shouldn’t pose the same problems as BCP’s. PremPro® and other HRT forms are about one-fourth the strength of hormones versus BCP’s. So they should be safer, right?

Wrong! In a breathtaking study, The Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) disclosed a series of articles published in JAMA (Journal of the American Medical Association) in 2002 and 2003. The conclusions? That HRT, specifically the estrogen plus progestin like compounds had numerous negative effects. Increases in the rates of breast cancer, coronary heart disease and stroke were the major findings.

For more information on the WHI study, click here.

We know now that HRT is an unmitigated disaster for near menopausal and post-menopausal women. We also know the chemical components of HRT are actually less intense than the equivalent synthetic estrogens and progestins found in BCP’s.

For several decades, mainstream medicine thought HRT was a panacea for older women - solving a host of medical problems. HRT was supposed to improve a woman’s risk of heart disease, strokes, memory loss, Alzheimer’s dementia, bones, and menopausal symptoms.

Will Youth Save the Day?

We now know that HRT actually makes heart disease, strokes, memory loss and Alzheimer’s disease worse – or just outright causes those conditions. But it took 30 years to figure it out.

But Hormone Replacement Therapy was mostly for older women. But what about younger women taking BCP’s containing four times the synthetic hormone doses?

What about the earlier generation BCP’s that contained 20 times the estrogen levels?

Mainstream medicine has already been humbled about HRT. We’re already seeing reversals – disadvantages that are increasing the risk of breast cancer, high blood pressure, migraine headaches and depression.

Perhaps the only reason we’re not seeing more evidence of risks associated with the Pill is the fact women who take them are much younger than their HRT-taking counterparts. Younger bodies can tolerate more toxins.

As demographics change and these young women slowly mature into middle age - will we then see a dramatic increase in ill health – all due to oral contraceptives?

Time will tell, but the forecast isn’t good.

The Longer You Take the Pill, The Worse it Gets

The arrival of oral contraceptives and HRT began about the same time during the 1960’s. It took us 40 years to figure out there was a problem. During this “learning process” we managed to poison several hundred million women. There appears to be a direct relationship between the time oral contraceptives were taken and the resulting problems encountered at a later date.

The lone exceptions are in heart disease, heart attacks and migraine headaches. These conditions can be caused very quickly after starting on birth control pills – sometimes in just a few months of use, or even less.

Why Doesn’t My Doctor Know About This?

Here’s the snag: Ask your doctor about the problems we’ve discussed involving BCP’s, and he or she would highly recommend them without hesitation. Then if you experience any of the symptoms we talked about - they’ll discard the problems out of hand.

The dangers of BCP’s don’t stand a chance of getting recognized, simply because 90% of all doctors believe “Nothing is harmful until the drug industry or FDA finally admits it.” Why? Because that’s the way they’re taught in medical school.

Drug companies are also part of the problem, spending billions of dollars touting their products – prescription drugs all. In fact, here’s the dirty secret:

Drug companies spend more money on marketing and advertising to doctors than they do on new drug research – a whopping $8.5 billion in the year 2000 alone.

With this kind of money in play, no drug company wants news of catastrophic side effects leaking out to prescribing doctors. That would kill their prescription drugs sales. With the iron-fist control of information drug companies have over doctors, is there any wonder why your physician has never heard of these problems with oral contraceptives?

Promoting the Pill – Those Glossy Women’s Magazines

Pick up any woman’s magazine like Cosmopolitan, Madamoiselle, Vogue, Glamour or Marie Clair. You couldn’t find one without at least a couple of full page ads taken out by a large drug company, essentially singing the praises, wonders and benefits of BCP’s. These really slick advertisements bubble over with all of the good things they’ll do for you.

These ads will tell you how the Pill will regulate your periods, make them lighter and make your life worry-free. Even claims such as “clearing up your acne” are used with abandon.

And right they are…until you discover the true price tag these “benefits” really cost.

Other Forms of Birth Control

Same Chemically Altered Hormones

There are other forms of birth control similar to BCP’s that utilize the same poisonous effects of chemically altered hormones. Birth control patches like Ortho Evra, now the target of a nationwide class action suit, along with the long acting injection (depo-Provera) and Norplant implants are just such methods.

The “Morning After Pill” (Emergency Contraception) is just a much higher dose of BCP’s - albeit a little late. They all have the same toxic side effects as BCP’s and should be avoided. Ortho Evra has been singled out as doubling the already unacceptable risk of blood clots

Not Everyone Affected

Amazingly, many women have done just fine. Initial observations indicate that fully 50% of women who have taken BCP’s or HRT haven’t experienced any noticeable medical problems.

This is more a credit to the resiliency of the human body rather than the actual substances themselves. We can ingest a host toxic substances for long periods of time and the body still manages to fight off the destructive effects.

Unfortunately, not everyone has been so fortunate, and that’s one reason why you’re reading this report.

Is it Possible to Get the Benefits and Convenience

of the Pill … Without the “Bad Parts?”

In a perfect world, it’s entirely possible to manufacture a birth control pill using only natural hormones. Unfortunately, the big drug companies have no economic choice but to use synthetic, chemically altered hormones.

There’s a reason for this – one we already cited: Natural substances can’t be patented. Without a patent – there’s no profit to be had in developing the Pill. To be quite blunt about it, those giant multinational drug companies want you to continue suffering because of … MONEY!

Can You Still Take the Pill but Minimize Its Side Effects?

Yes, you can! We would prefer you stop the Pill altogether, but for those of you who wish to continue taking it, there is another way to take the Pill but reduce the damage.

No doubt about it, BCP’s are very convenient, effective for contraception and in some cases, do clear up acne. And yes, they do make your periods lighter, less painful and more regular.

So how do you get the benefits and convenience of the Pill and not play Russian Roulette with your health?

Here’s how: Continue to take the Pill like you always do, but add some natural progesterone every day you take the contraceptive. We call this our “Match the Pill” strategy.

Click here to learn more about the “Match the Pill” strategy.

Alternatives to the Pill

If you want to avoid the poisonous effects of the Pill altogether, you have to stop taking it. But that’s easier said than done. The downside is obvious: You have to come up with alternative methods of preventing pregnancy. Let’s face it, BCP’s are extremely convenient and effective at worry-free birth control.

Getting off of BCP’s presents new challenges in contraception. But there are alternatives. The main ones are:

Click here for a more detailed discussion on alternatives to contraception.

What Are You Going To Do About It ?

At this point, either you have taken Birth Control Pills in the past OR you are taking them now.

Past User of BCP’s:

For those of you who have taken BCP's in the past but are no longer using them, you may already be suffering from one or more of the problems listed above - such as PMS, uterine fibroids, ovarian cysts or other problems. Or you are rightfully concerned you may develop one or more of these conditions in the future.

In your situation of past usage of BCP’s, all you do is immediately start taking oral natural progesterone every day. The sooner you start this program, the sooner you can start to literally detoxify your body. Click here for natural progesterone dosage recommendations.

If You’re Currently Using Birth Control Pills

(or Patches, Depo-Medrol, or Implants)

If you are currently using BCP’s (or any other synthetic hormone method) then you have two choices: Either stop them now or continue taking them and suffer the consequences of slowly but surely poisoning your body.

Naturally, it is adamantly recommended you stop your BCP’s as soon as possible. The smoothest way of going off your BCP’s is to finish out your pack, wait until your period starts and then just don’t take it anymore. At that point you’ve just entered the category of former BCP users, and you should follow the natural progesterone recommendations we’re just about to mention…

The nastier of the two chemically altered hormones found in BCP’s is the progestin component – which is supposed to act like progesterone, but in reality causes more problems than benefits. By taking natural progesterone, you’ll be

The single most helpful effect is preventing unwanted future health problems and actually reversing current health conditions brought on by taking those artificial drugs.

Click here for more detail on natural progesterone recommendations.

(Migraine headaches are more complex and have their own solution and recommendations. Click here for more detail on migraines.)

What If You Want to Continue Taking BCP’s - Despite the Risks?

Some of you, however, do not wish to stop your BCP’s for a variety of reasons, particularly the tremendous convenience of preventing an unwanted pregnancy. For those of you who want to continue taking BCP’s in spite of their poisonous risks, there is something you can (and absolutely should!) do about it.

You should take natural progesterone on the same days you take the Pill. All BCP’s have 21 days of active ingredients (chemically altered hormones) and 7 days of either no pills or “sugar” pills. All you do is take the natural progesterone on the same days as your 21 days of your birth control pill regimen.

Every day you take your birth control pill, simply take a 50 mg capsule of oral progesterone twice daily. Simple.

Keep this in mind … as long as you take BCP’s you are still putting powerful chemical toxins into your body. However, by supplementing your BCP’s with natural progesterone, you will help reduce (but not completely eliminate) the dangerous effects. This method is not as good as stopping the Pill entirely, but it is better than just continuing taking BCP’s and suffering the possible grave consequences a few years (or even a few months) later.

Click here for more detail on natural progesterone recommendations.

Where Do You Get Bio-Identical Progesterone?

The best form of bio-identical progesterone is a convenient, easily swallowed capsule. The finest and least expensive source in the world can be found at http://www.progest50.com.
You can get it as a dietary supplement and without a prescription for as little as $15 per month.

Thanks. I've been staying away from pills having a feeling I will not be doing myself any favors if I take them. I only wish I wasn't tricked into believing mirena was any better. I know most women still believe there is nothing wrong with taking a pill, but I was never one of them!